Brothers
by VesperChan
Summary: Sasuke felt unequally low in his heart and knew, that for as long as he lived, it would be a challenge to feel as terrible as he felt when his brother announced to their parents the name of the girl he intended to court. ItaSaku Sassaku


_**Brothers Part I**_ _(Now with bonus content)_

* * *

Uchiha law was strict in many areas. No area was it stricter than in than the social graces. An example of these codes being Sasuke could not ask to court anyone until his older brother had found a girl to pursue or until he turned thirty.

Thirty was a long ways off, so Sasuke was eager for his brother to find a girl and settle down. It shouldn't have been difficult, Itachi was handsome enough, and he had a hoard of fangirls that would gladly die for a scrap of his hair. There wasn't a male in the entire village who was more fawned over, including Sasuke.

Itachi wasn't picky either. He ate what his mother made, served when his Hokage asked, and worked as his father requested. Finding a girl shouldn't have been difficult, but it was.

Itachi turned elusive when his twenty first birthday came and every aunt or uncle that asked got the same answer regarding his romantic life; no one and no plans. That didn't change when Itachi turned twenty two, and with his twenty third birthday approaching with no sign of a change, Sasuke felt jittery.

Sasuke wasn't like his brother. _He_ had a girl in mind, and had, had this same girl in mind ever since they were paired up in the academy. Sasuke Uchiha had always had a crush on Sakura Haruno, but it only grew more frantic after their transition into adulthood.

During the war she helped so many and even after the recovery, her hands never ceased to heal. Men came to her medical tent or hospital office on a regular basis to confess or leave her letters. She never returned those feelings, but Sasuke couldn't feel any peace in his heart knowing that his hands were tied from asking her out until his brother was spoke for. What if someone came along and stole her while he was still stuck waiting for Itachi? She was too lovely not to be desired by any free male.

They hadn't seen each other in a while either. She was so busy at the hospital and he had started taking on more and more missions, just like his brother, that it was hard to find time to hang out. They had been meaning to train as a team, but something always came up and it was driving him crazy on the inside.

It's not like he could ask her out now, even though that's what he wanted to do. He wanted to tell her how he felt and see if she felt the same way, the way he hoped she still did from back when they were kids too young for the academy. She used to have a crush on him way back then, according to his peers. He hadn't noticed it at the time, otherwise he would have taken advantage of it.

It felt like Sasuke was going to be stuck for forever in life, always missing his chance with her.

But then Itachi came home from a mission and stayed outside on the porch with his bandaged arm in a sling, watching the trees with a silent, far off look that meant he was thinking about something extra hard.

"What, is it a girl?" Sasuke joked, not actually meaning it.

Itachi nodded. "I'm afraid so."

Sasuke felt his face split in a grin. "Did you tell her? Does she know you want to court her?"

Uncharacteristically, Itachi's ears went pink. "It is not so simple. I can't."

"Why? You think she'll reject you?" When Itachi's shoulder lifted in a dismissive shrug Sasuke growled. "Oh no, Itachi, you don't get to back out of this, you have to say something. You've sacrificed too much for others. Do something selfish for once. That's what mom would say."

"And what would you say?"

"Go get the girl, duh." Sasuke rolled his eyes. He never mentioned wanting to date himself, so Itachi likely didn't know about how Sasuke felt regarding the whole situation, and that was for the best. If Itachi knew, he might have taken a wife on obligation just to make Sasuke happy.

Itachi looked up, his expression clouded. "I have your blessing?"

"Always."

That next week over dinner their mother was badgering them about all the leftovers she always had when Itachi spoke up.

"If it would be agreeable, I would like to bing a girl by next week for you to meet. She has already agreed and accepted my proposal of courtship."

Both his parents froze, shocked and stupefied for more than one reason. Firstly, Itachi was interested in a girl, secondly, he had already asked her before bring it to his parents, meaning he really wanted her and didn't want to risk his family saying no.

"A…girl?" his mother echoed, eyes glowing with hope. "Itachi, you've found someone?!"

Sasuke looked to see his older brother's face take on a healthy blush. Just the though of _her_ made all his features soften.

"Ah," Itachi answered, smiling to himself. "I was most fortunate she was not opposed to the idea of our courtship. I would like to bring her by."

"Of course!" their mother exclaimed, nearly jumping up. She was excited of course, but it was hard to hide Itachi's attachment towards this woman and that made her proud as a mother. She wanted Itachi to find love and be happy. "What's her name?"

Sasuke smirked, feeling happy for himself and happy for his brother. Sakura had asked to train with him and Naruto tomorrow and he was already planning what he was going to say to her. If Itachi had already picked a girl and was courting her, then he could finally ask Sakura out and date until Itachi got married. Knowing his older brother, Sasuke doubted Itachi would want to wait very long. Sasuke couldn't help but shake a little bit at the idea of Sakura and him being married in a year's time from now. Soon it wouldn't be Sakura Haruno, but Sakura Uchiha.

He picked at his tomato chunks with his chopsticks, raising a piece to his mouth when he heard the words that stopped his heart and made him feel like the world just sucker punched him in the gut.

"Haruno Sakura."

* * *

 ** _Brothers Part II_**

Itachi Uchiha felt a muted sort of pride in how he carried himself professionally. True it had been what he was raised to be, what he had been trained to do, but at the end of the day when everything is a choice, Itachi liked feeling that he chose to be who he was, and that he chose well.

Itachi loved his village fiercely, almost as much as he loved his family. It brought him joy to serve his village and protect it just like it made him happy to help around the house and teach Sasuke how to do the advanced level jutsu he wasn't supposed to be learning just yet.

With all this being said, Itachi was no slouch when it came to his responsibilities, and he wasn't selfish either. No one could say he hadn't done enough for his people, unless they were talking about continuing his legacy in the family. It made him squirm just to think about the old matchmakers who would come to his house at all hours with pictures and letters and menus of girls for Itachi to choose from as soon as possible like they were nothing more important than the side order of soup at a noodle shop.

It stressed Itachi out to think about marriage, knowing he felt no desire for it other than as a means of appeasing specific people. One of those people was Sasuke, because Itachi knew Sasuke couldn't make a move on any girl he chose until Itachi moved first. It was a stupid old law that the stupid elders held fast to. Maybe they would have done away with it sooner, but they saw how reluctant Itachi was to wed and pulled it out of the dust to shove into his face, hoping the guilt of holding Sasuke back would encourage Itachi to pick a girl.

He wasn't stupid. He knew his brother wanted to ask someone out. Sasuke had been sweet on a lady for a number of years now, but Itachi did his best to respect the privacy Sasuke tried to keep. Sasuke didn't want anyone to know he liked a girl, so Itachi pretended he didn't notice and refused to dig further into it.

It became easier the more time he spent away on missions for the village. There were even some days when he was able to wake up in the morning and not think about it.

Itachi took more missions than he should have, and due to his negligence one day, came back to the village with a broken wrist and something nasty burning the side of his ribs.

"I almost never see you back here," the nurse said, entering the room. Itachi looked up to see who it was and corrected himself. Sakura Haruno was a doctor, and one of the best anyone could ask for. He swallowed, nodded his head in greeting.

"I apologize for troubling you."

"Don't," Sakura began to say, her hands glowing green on his side. "I'm just thankful you're not trying to run away like the others. At least you had the sense of mind to come in and act like a civilized human being. I'm tired of running ninja down because they don't like hospitals."

"That would be most…unwise," Itachi said, wincing as the cloth was removed from his side. He had tied it there to cover the wound from the acid and when Sakura peeled it away, it took the scab with it.

She was frowning at the wound. "It's lucky for you that you came to me. I'll need some time to draw the toxins out, this was more than just an acid attack. That's what people would normally just treat, but I can recognize poison when I see it. Hold on."

Her hands were warm and Itachi felt himself relax into her touch. It was rare, but he closed his eyes and let his mind drift. He was bleeding out on a hospital bed with a serious injury and a broken wrist, but he felt better under her hands then he had in a long time. He felt at peace.

"Better, that's it!"

Itachi blinked, feeling like he had just woken up. "What?"

Sakura turned to him and blushed, looking like she had told an inappropriate joke. "Oh, no sorry, I didn't mean all of you, just the burn. I removed the poison and healed the burn site. I still need to fix your wrist, Itachi san. I'm sorry if you thought I was being negligent."

"I would never suspect you of such," he politely answered, pulling up his arm for her to inspect at the wrist. He had put it in a crude splint of sorts that kept it from hurting more than it should.

Sakura undid the splint and held his hand as she poured her chakra into the broken bone, concentrating. Itachi had broken bones before, so he knew it would take longer to heal. Sometimes, if the break was bad, it could take multiple sessions to heal. He didn't like coming back multiple times, but he suspected he wouldn't mind if it was for Sakura.

He had heard a lot of good things about her, not only from his brother (who had been on her academy issued rookie team), but from a multitude of different people. Apparently, during the last ninja war she had stood out as the 'angel of mercy' who kept their casualties from reaching overwhelming numbers. The other ANBU males he knew that weren't already in a relationship unanimously agreed she was quite the catch, if only she were catchable.

"You did a good job of taking care of this," Sakura said, shaking him from his thoughts of her. Itachi looked up and saw her smiling down at his hand. He almost blushed, considering how borderline inappropriate it was to think of her so casually.

"Will I need to come back?" Itachi asked, secretly hoping the answer would be yes.

But Sakura shook her head. "I don't think so. It wasn't bad, and I've stimulated your natural healing process to cover what I couldn't heal all at once. You're off for the next week, however, to recover. If it starts hurting any more come in for some painkillers."

Of course Sakura wasn't like those other mediocre healers. Of course it would only take one session lasting less than an hour. What did he expect of the Hokage's apprentice?

"Itachi, are you alright?"

He blinked, looking up in question. "I am not in pain."

"That's not it. You looked down. It's only a week, and I'm sure you'll have a mission waiting for you as soon as you're cleared. If you really want to fight me on it I'll trim it down to five days leave." She already had her clipboard out and was writing him up. In a few minutes she would be somewhere else with someone else. She handed him a sling and helped tie it around his neck.

"If it is still giving me trouble I'll come in to see you again. That is all."

Sakura smiled brightly, tearing off Itachi's doctor note for mission leave. "Perfect, I'll see you around, then. Oh, and tell Sasuke kun I said hi. I feel bad I haven't see him in a while. I'll try to get some time off for Team 7 later this week."

Mutely, Itachi nodded. She didn't say anything more before waltzing out, leaving him feeling crummier than a box of broken cookies. He felt down all the way home, hating how his mood could change so drastically. It was the best day ever when she was next to him, and the worst day ever when she was leaving him. It made sense now, how those other guys felt after rejection. Itachi hadn't even asked and already he was feeling down.

Did he want to ask?

"What, is it a girl?" sasuke asked when he saw Itachi's face.

He wanted to lie, but Itachi didn't have the mind to. "I'm afraid so."

He heard Sasuke gasp in surprise and ask excitedly, "Did you tell her? Does she know you want to court her?"

Itachi felt his ears burn. Poor little brother didn't have the same sense of intimidation when it came to girls. Itachi couldn't do what Sasuke did. He had never been on a three man team as a child with a girl to talk to. He went straight to ANBU and skipped all the 'how to socialize like a regular person' classes. "It is not so simple. I can't."

Why? You think she'll reject you?" When Itachi's shoulder lifted in a dismissive shrug Sasuke growled. "Oh no, Itachi, you don't get to back out of this, you have to say something. You've sacrificed too much for others. Do something selfish for once. That's what mom would say."

He was right, but Itachi didn't want to know what their mother would say. She made no secret what she wanted from his two boys. "And what would you say?"

"Go get the girl, duh."

Itachi felt his heart heat up at the thought of actually speaking to Sakura again, or asking her out, of holding her hand. It was daunting and thrilling and terrifying. And wouldn't it be weird if he suddenly had a girlfriend? Would that make it weird for Sasuke? She had been close with him for a long time now. They still trained together as the team 7 squad often enough.

"I have you blessing then?" Itachi heard himself ask. A selfish part of his heart didn't want to tell Sasuke who he was looking at, for fear of his brother saying something negative. He doubted Sasuke would, Sasuke was too kind to be that mean to his brother, but Itachi couldn't help but want to keep Sakura Haruno all to himself.

Sasuke smiled.

"Always."

Itachi didn't wait. He went back the next day and waited with a potted fern tiny enough to sit in the palm of his hand and a letter he had written the night before. It was stiff, traditional, and old fashioned of him, but his nerves were worse than what he showed on the outside.

"Itachi, is your wrist hurting already?" Sakura asked, coming into his room with a look of concern. She didn't seem in a rush today, the hospital was quiet too. That was good.

"My wrist is fine, Sakura san. I wanted to thank you for your help yesterday and ask you something. Here, this is for you. It's a Queen's Hair Lace fern, it doesn't grow very much more than what you see, but it's been used to make-"

"Burn remedies," Sakura finished in excitement, taking the plant he offered with gentle fingers. Her smile was making his heart hurt. "These are rare, where did you find him?" she asked.

"On a…mission a while back. I keep plants, in a collection. I thought you would like this one."

"That's so cute," Sakura laughed, making his ears burn. "I didn't know you collected plants. You must really enjoy those Suna missions then."

"I also had a letter for you, but it's a bit long so I would like to summarize its contents here, myself," he said, holding up the letter before pausing. She was looking at him and he felt pinned in place. "If you don't mind."

She shook her head and he handed over the letter. Still holding onto it, he wouldn't let her take it fully until he finished speaking.

"Sakura Haruno, you are a fantastically amazing woman I deeply admire and respect. Would you do me the honor of considering me as a partner in courtship?"

He let the letter go and bowed his head, not daring to look her in the eyes as his words sank in. He didn't want to see it if she was frowning or making a face of displeasure.

Itachi looked up when he felt her hand on his shoulder. Lifting his eyes he saw she was smiling softly at him, still holding the plan and the letter close to her heart. "I would like that very much, Itachi Uchiha."

Itachi was the happiest man alive.

* * *

Something short I was writing on my phone and finished on my computer. The first part I posted on my tumblr page and I have been meaning to write the rest of it, the part for Itachi's POV, but didn't get around to it until just now. Yet the question still remains, will Itachi ever find out Sasuke is in love with Sakura? If he does, will he give her up or fight for her? I wonder.

I hope you enjoyed. Please review!


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